Highlights Editorial, March 09
This issue of Highlights contains the annual report of ISPRS for 2008; a year which saw the Congress and a change of officers. The annual report therefore covers the activities of two groups of Technical Commission Presidents: the new and the old. We are now well into the 2008-2012 quadrennium and various activities are getting under way. The Technical Commission Presidents have formed their Working Groups and the WG chairs are preparing their programmes. Some events for 2009 were planned before the Beijing Congress, such as the 33rd International Symposium on Remote Sensing of Environment, 6th International Symposium on Mobile Mapping Technology and the 22nd CIPA Symposium. These are important recurring events in the ISPRS Calendar and should attract a large number of delegates.
But what of other decisions made in Beijing? An important action was the agreement of the Beijing Declaration, (see http://www.isprs.org/congresses/beijing2008/beijing-declaration.aspx ). This has now been widely circulated and printed copies have been produced with details of the organisations which have endorsed the declaration: to date this is 14, including many of the members of the Joint Board of Geospatial information Societies (JBGIS) and the ICSU GeoUnions. Endorsement is not enough; we need to ensure that organisations implement the commitments set out in the Declaration. ISPRS has been working towards this for some time by supporting the Group on Earth Observation (GEO) and the Data Sharing Principles which GEO has drafted. During the next four years ISPRS will continue to work to ensure that the photogrammetry, remote sensing and spatial information sciences benefit society. To do this we will work with other organisations to develop joint programmes and will take available opportunities to promote the work of ISPRS. For people not already involved in a working group, or other activity, such as the student consortium, now is an ideal opportunity to become active. All Working Group chairs welcome active members and you are encouraged to contact them to find out how you can participate.
In the year 2000 ISPRS published a Strategic Plan; now, nearly 10 years on, and with the 100th anniversary of ISPRS coming up in 2010, is a good time to review that plan and ensure that ISPRS has a structure and programme fit for the 21st Century. The Plan is being reviewed and a new Strategic Plan will be launched at the Centenary celebration in July 2010. The review committee will welcome any comments on how ISPRS should look in 2020, and how we can meet the challenges of extracting information from imagery and using this to serve society.
Ian Dowman
First Vice President